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SURVEY OF ITS HISTORY.
101
The form of government in this period appears to most advantage at its
commencement, that is, as long as the leadership was in the hands of that shrewd
statesman, Arvid Horn. The dark side of the picture showed itself more and
more towards the end, especially the corruption spoken of, which, to all
appearance, even jeoparded the very safety of the country. With surprising ease,
and without shedding a drop of blood, Gustavus III (1771—92), the very year
after his accession, by a coup d’etat abolished the form of government previously
existing, and substituted for it the Constitution of 1772. This introduces the
period called in Swedish history.
The Gust avian Period (1772—1809). The royal power now became
considerably extended, yet without becoming autocratic. The country was weary of
party strife, and attached itself with confidence to the King, who had imbibed
the doctrines of the age respecting enlightened despotism, and governed well for
some time in accordance with the spirit of those doctrines. Gustavus III had
an artist’s nature, with its merits and its faults; he had a sincere love of his
country and endeavoured to make it great once more; but he had neither
sufficient tenacity nor ability to administer financial matters. He surrounded
himself with a brilliant circle of poets and artists, an inheritance, for the most
part, from the literary florescence of the preceding period: we may name
Kellgren, Thorild, Leopold, Anna Maria Lenngren; preeminent amongst the artists
of the period was Sergei, the predecessor of Thorwaldsen. At this time, too,
Sweden made a contribution to the domain of philanthropy which must not be
forgotten. Influenced by Swedenborg, Wadström, a Swede, was the first person
in Europe to lift up his voice on behalf of the abolition of negro-slavery, being
thus a precursor of Wilberforce, and, as such, much esteemed both in England
and in France, in which latter country he received the distinction of honorary
citizenship.
But the King soon wearied of his work of reform, and involved himself and his
land in economical difficulties. He knew of no other means to save himself
from the growing opposition except a war with Russia: this war, however, was
carried on with honour, and made the position of Sweden secure against that
powerful neighbour. He could break down the opposition of the irritated
nobility only by means of a new coup d’etat in 1789, which came near
re-establishing autocracy. Three years later he fell victim to an assassin, goaded by the
implacable bitterness excited, especially amongst the nobility, by his political
highhandedness.
The royal autocracy, however, was inherited by his son, Gustavus IV Adolphus
(1792—1809), one of the most ill-fated sovereigns who ever had the guidance of the
destinies of Sweden. He was undoubtedly fully imbued with the most
honourable intentions, but his limited mental powers rendered him at last impossible
as a king. His fanatical hatred of the universal conqueror, Napoleon, whom he
believed himself called upon to overthrow, caused the latter to incite the
enmity of Russia towards Sweden; and the war of 1808—09 brought about the
loss of Finland, a country which had so long faithfully shared the fortunes of
Sweden, and, thanks to her solicitude, had also gained a share in the culture of
western Europe. In order to save the kingdom from ruin, the deposition of the
king, by means of a military revolution, became necessary (1809). A Riksdag
was called together to draw up a new constitution, and the result of its
deliberations is the constitution now in force.
Recent Times (1809 to the present day). The history of Sweden during
the last century will be so often treated from different points of view, in the
following sections of this book, that we can here confine ourselves to some few
general observations.
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